A global platform for comparing best‑in‑class performance across energy transition, foodservice and digital retail
Over the past three years, Global Convenience has built something new in the convenience and mobility retail world: a transparent, global platform for comparing best‑in‑class performance across energy transition, foodservice, and digital retail. And lately, with Smartest Store, in partnership with NACS, momentum has been building.
What began as three separate online competitions has evolved into a powerful learning engine, connecting operators in more than 100 countries and providing rich, openly accessible case studies that the industry is now using to guide investment and innovation.
We have all had enough chicken dinners at Awards nights to know that the industry standard ‘awards night’ programme may be better for airlines ticket sales than for generating deep knowledge about best industry practice. And, rather than simply celebrating winners, we believe that our competitions now serve a deeper purpose, capturing, documenting and sharing the smartest ideas emerging across the sector, from EV hubs and food‑led convenience stores to data‑driven, AI‑enhanced retail formats.
The industry response has been really strong. In fact to date, across all competitions we’ve had 99 entries – each one with a special video, often specially commisioned, a detailed written profile and high quality site and team images. And we couldn’t have done this without the help of our sponsors and Knowledge Partners for the different competitions who include: Vontier, Invenco, Visa, Moselely Group, Liquid Barcodes, Accenture, Plexor AI and VenHub Global.
The best EV hub in the world
A blueprint for the multi‑energy future
The 2024 EV Hub competition established the model that would define the series. With 24 entries from 9 countries, the programme generated more than 350,000 LinkedIn impressions, 69,000 page views, and attracted 25,000 unique visitors, making it the largest global repository of EV charging retail case studies ever published.
For retailers and CPOs considering investment decisions we featured exceptional entries from China, Finland, Ireland, Germany, Norway, Sweden, Netherlands, United Kingdom and the United States of America. Participating companies included bp Pulse, Circle K, EG Group, DCC Energy, Gridserve, Maxol, Neste, Osprey, Neon, Sainsbury’s, Shell Recharge, St1 Nordic.
The top three sites, Able Mandal in Norway, Circle K Vädermotet in Sweden, and Seed & Greet in Germany, showcased the range of formats emerging across Europe.
Explore the top three winners in the 2024 competition: 2024 Top 3 Best EV Hub Entry Profiles
In 2025, the competition expanded its geography further with 18 entries across 14 countries. Shell Recharge’s vast EV superhub at Bao’an Airport, Shenzhen, home to 258 fast chargers and a suite of integrated services, took the global title, ahead of Westmorland Gloucester Services (UK) and Circle K Järna (Sweden).
Explore the 2025 programme: 2025 EV Hub Entry Profiles
What sets the ‘Best EV Hub in the World’ competition apart is its explicit focus on benchmarking operational performance: including uptime, charging success ratios and experience design. This has made it a practical resource for operators planning their next round of EV investments.
The best foodvenience store in the world
The globalisation of food‑led convenience
If the ‘Best EV Hub in the World’ competition defined the future of mobility, the ‘Best Foodvenience Store in the World‘ competition has become the clearest window into the transformation of convenience foodservice.
The 2024 edition delivered extraordinary diversity: 32 entries from 15 countries across six continents. From Switzerland’s Valora to Dubai’s ENOC Zoom and South Africa’s Engen York, the competition revealed how universally food‑forward convenience has become.
Explore 2024 entries: 2024 Foodvenience entry profiles
Applegreen in Rathcoole, Ireland became the first winner of this competition and we interviewed CEO Joe Barrett about it on our Future of Convenience podcast. Here it is: Joe Barrett Future of Convenience episode.
In 2025, the field sharpened to 25 entries across 14 countries, attracting more than 9,000 retailer and supplier votes. Rutter’s 106 Milton in Pennsylvania was awarded the global title, with Argentina’s FGC Lion Place a close second and Switzerland’s avec by Valora taking third.
Explore the 2025 entries: 2025 Foodvenience entry profiles
Rutter’s win sparked deeper storytelling, including a detailed look at the store’s high‑concept dining and bar space, menu engineering and operational excellence, an example of how winners transition into industry case studies.
Hear the full story: Rutter’s Future of Convenience Episode
A synthesis of lessons from the 2024 showcase highlighted the rise of larger kitchens, multi‑station counters, upgraded bakery formats and beverage leadership, now critical to the proposition of modern convenience retail.
The smartest store in the world
Bringing digital transformation into the benchmarking mix
Announced for 2026, the Smartest Store in the World competition adds the third strategic pillar to the series: AI, data and advanced retail technology. Hosted by Insight Research and NACS, with Accenture as Knowledge Partner, it seeks case studies that demonstrate measurable business value, from improved labour efficiency and shrink reduction to predictive inventory, autonomous checkout and personalised customer engagement.
Explore the competition hub: Smartest Store Home
Entries close on 26 March 2026, with a global shortlist published on 30 April, a public vote through May, and the winner announced online and also at the NACS Convenience Summit in Warsaw on 17 June 2026.
Details and entry guidance: How to Enter
This competition completes the industry framework:
- EV Hub → energy transition
- Foodvenience → food‑led transformation
- Smartest Store → digital & AI acceleration
Together, they form a holistic model for how retail is evolving globally.
The judges
A global panel providing credibility and depth
Across all competitions, the judging panels bring together specialists in mobility, foodservice, retail operations, technology, payments and analytics. Their diverse expertise ensures the selection process is rigorous, international and transparent.
These profiles, published in full online, are an unusual level of openness for global awards programmes and reinforce the educational value of the entire benchmarking ecosystem.
Why this series matters
A shared global effort to move the industry forward
Across EV, Foodvenience and Smartest Store, the competitions have steadily built an open library of retail innovation. Operators can now explore dedicated profile pages, videos, interviews and site photos for every finalist, creating a level of transparency and shared learning the sector has never experienced before.
Because industry voting participation spans more than 100 countries, the perspective is genuinely global. And because each competition blends expert judging with industry‑wide expert voting, the final results reflect both professional rigour and on the ground retail knowledge.
At its core, this series isn’t just about awards. It’s about accelerating progress, making sure every operator, from family‑owned sites to multinational retail groups, has access to the very best ideas shaping the future of mobility, foodservice and technology.
